freddy333

Caliber 2135

I have to agree with you there. But, still, the Sub IS real & real trumps franken any day of the week, no matter how ugly it is. And I have the nagging feeling that I have seen that Sub somewhere before.........

I think it is more likely that they are receiving some enhanced patination to replicate age for the purpose you cited.

Interesting. Thanks. Now that I am thinking about it, I remember that these misspelled look-alikes were THE Big Problem for many watch brands even as far back as the 1960s. Back then, replicas, as we know them today (with correct branding), were mostly done by professional forgers on a piece-by-piece basis, so they were not a real profit threat to the majors. Or, at least, that is my recollection of things back then.

I would start stocking up now (or soon, if the economy takes another nose-dive).

Thank you, All.

When it comes to cool, Sammy Davis, Jr. (the world's greatest entertainer) was ice cold & the watch Sammy wore -- the Rolex Mystery Here is mine Just sayin.

Simple OPs with dauphine hands. Watches do not get much more classically cool than that.

Normally, I steer clear of ioffer due to that site's proclivity for attracting mostly rip-off artists, but I got sent there from google & happened upon a nice new vintage Rolex box for $68 (the post is actually selling a Daytona watch with box, but I think it is safe to assume that the box will be the value piece there). Of course, the watch you receive is unlikely to be the watch pictured, but for the price, the box might be a nice stocking stuffer for Christmas (click the pic for the link &, considering I found this on ioffer, it might be wise to ask the seller if the box pictured is what is being shipped) Here is a gen for reference

Were it not for the fact that the owner is a knowledgeable & reliable vintage Rolex collector, I would have written this off as a poorly made franken. It may very well turn out to be similar to some of mine where only the dial is non-gen. Hard to tell with certainty without being able to open the case & inspect everything in person. But the watch appeared on the wrist of this guy while attending the recent Christie's auction in Geneva, where there are more than sufficient numbers of authoritative eyes & if anything about it appeared amiss to these people, I am pretty certain its questionable lineage would have been called out (or, at least, mentioned). So, for now, I would file this 1 in the 'With vintage Rolex, never say never.' category.

A couple of years ago, while doing some reconnaissance for my Phase I '42, I located a reasonable albino Daytona dial (from a website that has since vanished into the ether), but, ultimately, I just was not sufficiently enamored with that model to pursue it..............& I think I have enough Daytonas to keep me off the streets. I wanted to use their dial, but NDtrading wanted $850 for the dial alone. When I asked why such an excessive price, they said 'dial has special paint'. I suspect, as is usually the case, the same dial will eventually begin to appear in the listings of many of our usual sources & for a reasonable price. Anyway, this cost me about $2,500 & everything except the dial & insert is gen (many parts NOS), & since I did the work myself, I know that everything is in correct working order & correct for the model Based on what I have seen, highly unlikely. And the biggest question, again, based on what I have seen, is how many (serious) problems would be lurking inside. So, if you have no other options, that is certainly 1 way to get an albino '42. But I think you can also see that you are paying dearly for the chance.

Welcome back, Pug. Have not seen you around these parts for some time. I hope all is well.

Ditto.

Buy the seller before you buy the watch.

Almost true. I collect reps of fairly common luxury watches, but I only spend serious money (above $1k) to construct frankens of rare vintage Rolex watches that are out of reach to mere mortals Well, you get the idea. Unfortunately, I think you may have to wait until hell freezes over (or you can afford the price of a gen) before anyone will ever (faithfully) repro a double-Swiss dial. But, although I cannot provide any links, I have seen underline 62xx aftermarket dials over the years, so I know they are out there.

White 6205 Sub. I am always suspicious when I see oddities like this appear out of nowhere, especially, without the original bracelet. But the owner has good credentials, so I accept his word that it is gen (although the hands do not appear to be original to this watch).

The SWISS looks odd (dial could be repainted, but impossible to tell for sure with these pics), but, otherwise, it looks good.

Retail when I got mine was about $95 & the only source is Rolex or a Rolex watchmaker with a parts account (Rolex does not sell parts directly to the public). Mine came from a friend as a 1-time favor. My CHS GMTIIC was part of the initial run from Josh a year or 2 ago & fitting a gen xtal was a gamble since no one had previously attempted it. Fortunately, (with the exception of the gen xtal gasket) the xtal fit perfectly (but I did have to reuse the rep gasket - there are a couple of threads detailing my experience that you can search out). I have no idea whether the noobfactory reps accept gen parts. So, if you can source the xtal, you might have to bite the bullet & throw the dice as I did.

In order to get this effect The crystal must be AR'd like the gen (on the underside of the crystal, below the cyclops) (gen crystal) In case you missed it, read this.

'Genuine'? They do not get any more aftermarket than this (note the incomplete relief stamping on the clasp blade, which I have never seen on any gen & the irregularly sized '7205' stamp near the end links - exactly the same irregularity as on my Yuki 7206s). It seems that there is a pattern developing on ebay with a number of Asian sellers (mostly HK) fitting gen end links onto these aftermarket bracelets (note the wrench marks/damage on the end link hinges (& only on the hinge) - there is no logical reason for this type of damage to occur to this area of a bracelet under normal usage, it only occurs when someone has swapped end links on a bracelet where these are permanently-attached)

I wore my Rose Sub today

I know this is not the bezel displayed on Yuki's website, but I was so in love with that correctly spaced 110 that I did not correctly gauge the power of its other sins. Your points are absolutely correct. Not only are the fonts different (especially the missing flat 'S') & some numbers located on the insert differently, but the printing is (incorrectly) on the surface of a black plastic insert instead of on the bottom of a clear plastic insert (with black paint covering the bottom). I imagine that either Yuki's suppliers changed or the factory changed its design without letting Yuki know. In any case, I have re-installed the original DW & this 1 will go back. A pity, because that obvious 1-1-0 does keep me from wearing the watch more often. The Search Continues................

Love it, Alli A gen 7835 & a couple of mods & that will be a killer piece. Just switched over to my 6241 (with new Yuki bezel) for a test-drive

No idea where the irony is, but a very touching pic.